Non-Participation
Non-Participation
June 27th -
August 8th, 2014
Lauren van Haaften-Schick's solo exhibition and publication Non-Participation is a collection of letters by artists and other cultural producers written to decline their participation in events or exhibitions for political or ethical reasons.
Opening Reception:
June 27th from 7 - 10pm
Workshop:
August 9th from 10am - 12pm
At the heart of Non-Participation is the notion that what we say “no” to is perhaps more important than what we agree to.
Non-Participation is a collection of letters by artists, curators, and other cultural producers written to decline their participation in events, or with organizations and institutions which they either find suspect or whose actions run counter to their stated missions. These statements are in effect protests against common hypocrisies among cultural organizations, and pose a positive alternative to an equally ubiquitous pressure to perform.
Historic instances and examples include: Adrian Piper’s letter announcing her withdrawal from the show Reconsidering the Object of Art: 1965-1975 at LA MoCA, stating her opposition to Phillip Morris’ funding of the museum and requesting that her criticizing statement be publicly shown; A letter from Jo Baer to a Whitney Museum curator canceling an upcoming exhibition on the grounds that her work was not being taken seriously because she is a woman artist; Marcel Broodthaers' open letter to Joseph Beuys questioning the relationship between artists and exhibiting institutions; the withdrawal of John Baldessari, Barbara Kruger, Catherine Opie and Ed Ruscha from the board of trustees of LA MoCA in response to the leadership of Jeffrey Deitch and his dismissal of curator Paul Schimmel; and public announcements by art writers Dave Hickey and Sarah Thornton of their “quitting” the art world.
The artist is continuing to collect letters of non-participation, which will be compiled in the final publication, with other activities surrounding the project to be announced.
Please send copies of your letters via email to lauren@laurenvhs.com.
With your submission, please indicate whether or not you wish to remain anonymous. All names and contact information can be omitted or made public, depending on your preference. Each letter will be accompanied by a factual account of the incident and/or any other relevant information that could illuminate the situation, as you see fit.
The deadline for submissions is May 1, 2014 to be included in the print version of the project. Letters submitted after the deadline may be included in an online version.
The exhibition will conclude with a workshop for artists to reflect on their own capacities for (non)participation in relation to a range of common opportunities endemic to the art world.